At the Summit for a Connected Mediterranean in Nice, Italy reaffirms its ambitions to become a strategic hub for energy, digital, and transport links across the region. The event, chaired by President Macron, signalled growing Franco-Italian alignment on Mediterranean connectivity amid rising geopolitical tensions
A meeting in Côte d’Azur. At Monday’s Summit for a Connected Mediterranean in Nice, organised by France on the sidelines of the Third UN Ocean Conference, Italy was represented by Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani on behalf of Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni.
- Tajani’s mission to Nice comes just one week after President Emmanuel Macron’s trip to Italy, signalling growing common ground between Rome and Paris in their regional ambitions.
- Italy is focusing on connectivity to strengthen its strategic role in the Mediterranean—spanning energy, digital infrastructure, and maritime transport.
Decoding the event. The summit is convened and chaired by French President Emmanuel Macron and includes Mediterranean and Gulf countries, as well as international financial institutions and major port authorities from both regions.
- The summit will explore connection infrastructure (undersea, maritime, and land) and terminals, including ports and digital hubs.
- The goal is to mobilise cooperation and investment in physical, digital, and energy infrastructure connecting Europe, the Mediterranean, and the Gulf.
Italy’s key priorities… centre on boosting connectivity across the Mediterranean through strategic infrastructure.
- This includes major energy projects such as Elmed, Medlink, and the South H2 Corridor, which are designed to bring clean energy and hydrogen from North Africa to Europe.
- Alongside this, Italy is focused on expanding digital networks to foster deeper regional integration. Maritime transport is also a crucial part of the picture—particularly through the India-Middle East-Europe Corridor (IMEC), with the port of Trieste playing a pivotal role as a gateway between the Euro-Atlantic area and the Indo-Pacific region.
What we’re watching. Rome aims to establish itself as a central hub for European infrastructure security and resilience.
- The broader objective is to ensure that the Mediterranean remains central to east-west dynamics.
- This has become even more pressing since Houthi attacks began disrupting the Red Sea in November 2023.
- At the same time, there are growing concerns that North Africa could become a strategic foothold for Russia—a risk recently highlighted by Admiral Enrico Credendino, Chief of the Italian Navy.
